2007 World Series of Poker: The Return of the Professional
Seasoned Veterans Get Their First, and Hellmuth Breaks Record
By Bob Pajich
At press time, the second third of the
World Series of Poker was completed, and the story line for this installment was the number of professionals who made it deep and either won their first bracelets (congrats to Jeffrey Lisandro and Eli Elezra) or added to their collection of gold. Phil Hellmuth shattered a three-way tie with Doyle Brunson and Johnny Chan by winning his historical 11th bracelet.
Katja Thater became the first woman since Annie Duke did it in 2004 to win a
WSOP bracelet in an event that wasn't either the seniors or the ladies-only tournament when she won the $1,500 seven-card razz event. And two other women came awfully close to doing it: Beth Shak finished second in the $3,000 no-limit hold'em event and Vanessa Selbst finished third in the $5,000 heads-up no-limit hold'em event.
Other highlights included Allen Cunningham winning his fifth bracelet ($5,000 pot-limit hold'em), Scott Clements winning his second ($1,500 pot-limit Omaha), and Hoyt Corkins winning his second ($2,500 no-limit hold'em).
And then there are the players whom no one ever heard of who took home bracelets. There's even a story about a player who won his bracelet on a Sunday night, then stressed about making it to work in Boston the next day. Everyone's having a blast. Enjoy the following postcards from the 2007
WSOP.
William Durkee Wins Event No. 10 - $2,000 No-Limit Hold'em
Durkee Eliminated Justin Bonomo and Then Took Down the Bracelet
By Ryan Lucchesi
In what has become a trend this summer, a
World Series of Poker bracelet was once again defined by who did not win the prize. This time it was Justin Bonomo, who entered the final table with a massive chip stack. He played solid, aggressive poker, but it wasn't enough.
Poker is a game of skill in the long run, but on any given day, lady luck can turn her back on you. It was that day for Bonomo, who was eliminated in fourth place. Lady luck did manage to smile in the direction of William Durkee, though; he took home the gold bracelet for event No. 10 and the $566,916 first-place prize.
Durkee held a 3-to-1 chip advantage heading into the heads-up match with Todd Terry, but both players were conservative in the early stages. This was peculiar on the part of Durkee, who held such a commanding chip lead.
This continued for a while until a board of 10
9
8
Q
sat on the table. Terry moved all in and Durkee made the call. Terry flipped over the A
Q
for top pair, top kicker. Durkee turned over the J
for a queen-high straight. To add insult to injury, the Q
was dealt on the river. Terry was eliminated in second place, and he would take home $353,875. That made Durkee the champion of the $2,000 no-limit hold'em event.
Chris Reslock Tops the Best in Event No. 11 - $5,000
Seven-Card Stud Defeats Yet Another World-Class Player
By Seth Niesen
It's not very often that you tangle with the best in the world for a
World Series of Poker title. It's even more unlikely that you win. That's the story of Chris Reslock, a former Atlantic City cab driver turned poker player. He defeated five-time bracelet winner Phil Ivey in a short heads-up battle to win his first
WSOP bracelet and $258,453.
This wasn't the first time that Reslock faced a world-class player heads up. In 2005, he defeated John Juanda in a lengthy heads-up battle to win the 2005
WSOP Tournament Circuit event at the Showboat Atlantic City. This time, Reslock beat 180 players to win the top prize of the $846,000 prize pool.
Reslock entered the final table sixth in chips ($141,000), with the other chip counts as follows: David Oppenheim ($609,000), Phil Ivey ($322,000), Pat Pezzin ($234,000), Theo Jorgensen ($229,000), Oriane Teysseire ($195,000), Ted Lawson ($90,000), and Marco Traniello ($30,000).
Entering heads-up play, Reslock held a $1.4 million to $325,000 chip advantage. It took just seven hands to end the contest, and on the final hand, Reslock tabled the K
J
10
10
10
4
2
for trip tens. Ivey showed the Q
9
8
8
7
7
, then took his last downcard and fired it into the muck. That gave Reslock the win, $258,453, a
WSOP gold bracelet, and a 2-0 record against the best in the world.
Jason Warner Victorious in Event No. 12 - $1,500 Sixhanded No-Limit Hold'em
Rides Momentum to Take Down World Series of Poker Gold
By Seth Niesen
It is clear that poker is a game of skill, but if you ask Jason Warner, he most likely would agree that luck is involved, as well. Warner was down to his last card against David Zeitlin when he spiked a set to double up. He rode that momentum to his first
World Series of Poker victory and a $481,698 payday.
Warner, a 22-year-old from Vancouver, British Columbia, outlasted a field of 1,427 players. He had the chip lead entering the final six with $945,000, and the rest of the field shaped up like this: Zeitlin ($899,000), Brian Miller ($831,000), David Mitchell-Lolis ($736,000), Steve Olek ($484,000), and Matt Brady ($381,000). Second-place finisher Zeitlin, who nursed a short stack for much of the final table, scored a huge double-up and challenged for the bracelet.
Heads-up play began with Zeitlin holding a $2,900,000 to $1,300,000 chip lead. Warner limped in from the button with the 5
5
, and Zeitlin raised to $300,000. Warner moved all in and Zeitlin made the call with the 7
7
. The flop came K
10
9
, and the turn was the Q
, giving Warner outs to a split.
With Zeitlin one card away from winning a
WSOP bracelet, the river brought a devastating 5. That card won Warner the pot and the chip lead. Zeitlin was not able to recover after the loss, and he eventually busted out in second place for $269,778.
Allen Cunningham Takes Home Fifth Bracelet in Event No. 13 - $5,000 Pot-Limit Hold'em
Wins One for the Thumb
By Seth Niesen
Stu Ungar, Phil Ivey, Chris "Jesus" Ferguson, Layne Flack, Berry Johnston, Gary Berland, and Ted Forrest have been joined by Allen Cunningham.
Cunningham became a member of the illustrious five-bracelet club with his victory in Event No. 13. He survived a field of 389, who created a top prize of $487,287. The final table was stacked with top pros, and they entered the day like this: Jeff Lisandro ($982,000), Joe Patrick ($631,000), Travis Rice ($544,000), Gavin Griffin ($524,000), Cunningham ($346,000), Jason Lester ($295,000), Alan Jaffray ($254,000), Humberto Brenes ($225,000), and Keith Lehr ($182,000).
The heads-up battle was a good one. Cunningham defeated high-stakes cash-game pro Jeff Lisandro in an 80-hand heads-up match. It featured countless small pots, then two huge ones in succession. On the final hand, Cunningham called Lisandro's all-in bet with the K
9
, but was behind Lisandro's Q
Q
. He then turned a king to lock up his fifth bracelet.
During the bracelet ceremony, Phil Hellmuth came over from late in the $1,500 no-limit hold'em event to congratulate Cunningham. He bowed in a
Wayne's World "I'm not worthy" style before climbing the stage and shaking Cunningham's hand. Cunningham still has ample time to make 2007 his first multi-bracelet year, and if he were to do it either this year or next, he would be the youngest player in
WSOP history to win six.
Michael Keiner Wins Marathon Event No. 14 - $1,500
Seven-Card Stud Stud Event Attracted 385 Players
By Ryan Lucchesi
The first marathon event of the 2007
World Series of Poker took place during the $1,500 seven-card stud tournament. Action started at 4 p.m., and it continued through the night and into the morning of the next day. Of the 385 players who entered, Michael Keiner emerged victorious at just after 7 a.m. Keiner was the most gracious bracelet winner of the summer thus far, as his genuine happiness could not be ignored as he celebrated the win.
"The money doesn't count. This is it," said Keiner as he raised the gold bracelet in the air. "Ten years now I've been waiting."
Keiner had to face a tough final table of Greg Raymer, Barry Greenstein, Larry Eubanks, Steve Sung, Dale Phillips, John Robertson, and Nesbitt Coburn. Of course, Raymer and Greenstein are the most well-known players of this bunch, but the others did have considerable tournament poker experience and results.
Phillips has cashed for more than $155,000, Sung for nearly a half-million, Coburn for almost $155,000, Robertson for more than $300,000, and Eubanks for more than $320,000. In fact, Keiner had the least amount of success coming into the tournament with "only" $62,000 in winnings.
Eubanks, Robertson, Raymer, Phillips, Greenstein, and Sung left in that order, leaving Coburn and Keiner heads up.
Keiner started the heads-up battle with a $100,000 advantage and he did nothing but increase that lead on the way to the tournament win by leaning on Coburn throughout their heads-up match. Keiner won the gold bracelet and $146,987. Coburn won $80,876.
Phil Hellmuth Wins Event No. 15 - $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em
Actions Speak Louder Than Words as Hellmuth Wins 11th Bracelet
By Alex Baer
Anyone who has sat at a tournament table with Phil Hellmuth has heard him refer to himself as the "greatest hold'em player in the world." After watching Hellmuth win his unparalleled 11th
World Series of Poker bracelet, it's hard to disagree.
Arguably the most recognized face in poker, Hellmuth finds many players willing to challenge him in pots, if only to return home with a story of how they tried to put a move on the "Poker Brat." A field of 2,628 players vied for the title and a share of the prize pool of $3,587,220.
Hellmuth's path to victory was not easy, particularly at the final table, where four other players had been before. Scott Clements won a bracelet last year and again this year, Morgan Machina and Fabrice Soulier made the same final table two years ago, and Rick Fuller had made a final table, as well.
Hellmuth found himself heads up with nearly a 6-to-1 chip lead against Andy Philachack. After a few hands, Hellmuth called Philachack's all-in bet with the A
3
, which was up against Philachack's A
10
. A 3 on the flop was all Hellmuth would need to finish in first place and take home $637,254, along with his 11th bracelet (which he will give to his youngest sister, Molly).
Philachack's second-place finish is his first cash at the
WSOP, good for $394,594. Ten-time bracelet winners Doyle Brunson and Johnny Chan were on hand to award Hellmuth his record-breaking bracelet.
James Richburg Wins Event No. 16 - $2,500 H.O.R.S.E.
Richburg Wins Second Bracelet in a Tough Event
By Julio Rodriguez
James Richburg came to the final table of this year's first H.O.R.S.E. event looking for his second bracelet, and he found it in a quiet corner of the Rio tournament area.
The win came with little fanfare, as the event was played out away from the
ESPN cameras and the lights of the final-table stage. Instead, this final table took place late at night, with hardly any railbirds - and people missed a great show.
A total of 382 players put up $2,500 to play, and Richburg left the Rio with the top prize of $238,881.
The final table featured some of the world's best mixed-game players. Their chip counts were as follows: Ali Eslami ($507,000), Richburg ($487,000), Robert Mizrachi ($262,000), Chris Bjorin ($227,000), Walter Browne ($207,000), Herb Van Dyke ($130,000), Harry Kazazian ($85,000), and Tom Schneider ($20,500).
After Bjorin was eliminated in third place, Richburg went into heads-up play against an international grandmaster chess player, Walter Browne. This was Browne's second final table of the Series. The final hand came during razz, with Richburg raising Browne all in. Richburg was ahead with 4-3-2 against Browne's 7-5-2. Browne ended up making a 10-7-5-2-A low, but he was bested by Richburg's second-nut low, 6-4-3-2-A.
The win showed the poker world that Richburg was no fluke in winning last year's razz bracelet, and he now has established himself as one of the top mixed-game players in the world.
Event No. 17: Sally Boyer Wins $1,000 Ladies World Championship
The Lone Pro at the Final Table Finishes Fifth
By Bob Pajich
A woman who won her way into the $1,000 ladies world championship event through a World Series of Poker Academy boot camp specifically for women is this year's ladies champion.
Sally Boyer, of Midway, Utah, made it through a field of 1,286 to capture the bracelet, which was specially made for this event. This was the largest ladies event in
World Series of Poker history. She won $262,077.
The final table included two professionals, Vanessa Selbst and PokerStars team member Katja Thater, who would go on to win her first bracelet in the $1,500 razz event two days later. Although the favorite going in, simply because of her past results, she could manage only fifth place in this event.
Final-table participants, in order of their elimination and their money won, were: Julie Dang, $14,628; Selbst, $20,480; Mindy Trinidad, $28,086; Fraike Sporschill, $37,448; Thater, $49,151; Kathleen Gliva, $70,216; Randi Calabro, $106,494; Anne Heft, $166,177; and the winner, Boyer, $262,077.
Dang was short-stacked entering the final table, and was soon eliminated. After her exit, the players tightened up and play ground to a standstill. Thater soon became the table captain and began to bully the rest of the ladies. She would up eliminating Selbst right before the dinner break.
Action picked up after the break, and in about the same time that it took to eliminate two players, the final two remained: Boyer, with $985,000, and Heft, with $1.6 million. The last few hands came down to pushing and calling, and Boyer won the championship with the K
2
against Heft's K
10
when she spiked a deuce on the river to win her first bracelet.
Ryan Lucchesi contributed to this report.
Saro Getzoyan Wins Event No. 18 - $5,000 Limit Hold'em
He Had to Rush Out of the Rio Afterward to Catch a Red-Eye
By Ryan Lucchesi
The day after Saro Getzoyan won the $5,000 limit hold'em world championship, he didn't celebrate a la Phil Hellmuth with a few bottles of Dom Perignon. And he didn't rent a limo and go club-hopping.
Minutes after he won event No. 18, Getzoyan glanced at his watch in a worried way. After all, he had to catch a flight back home so that he could be at a software-design job in Boston at 8 a.m. Wait until his co-workers hear about the $333,379 that came with the gold bracelet that he won.
Getzoyan outlasted 256 players to win his first
World Series of Poker bracelet. The generated prize pool was $1.2 million. The final table and the order of finishers were as follows: Getzoyan, Geoff Sanford, William Thorsson, Thor Hansen, David Gee, Tom Koral, Ray Dehkharghani, Don Todd, and Gabriel Nassif.
Getzoyan's heads-up match with Sanford was one of the most cordial ones of the tournament. The two chatted and joked between hands, but that didn't stop Getzoyan from applying constant pressure to Sanford.
After almost an hour of heads-up play, the final hand played out. With a flop of J
8
4
, Sanford wound up all in, holding the 9
8
. Getzoyan turned over the Q
J
. The turn and river cards were the Q
and 7
, and Sanford was eliminated in second place for a prize of $200,511. After the final cards were dealt, Getzoyan looked overwhelmed, and smiled from ear to ear while he displayed the new piece of hardware on his wrist.
Event No. 19: Francois Safieddine Wins $2,500 No-Limit Hold'em Contest
John Phan's Aces Get Cracked on Last Hand of Tourney
By Ryan Lucchesi
Each final table at the
World Series of Poker - or any poker tournament, for that matter - develops an identity: tight, loose, aggressive, passive, flamboyant, boring, long, short, and so on. The final table of the $2,500 no-limit hold'em event is described best as schizophrenic. At times it was talkative and at others standoffish, but for all the opposing themes that emerged during the course of action, this table was downright cruel in the end.
Francois Safieddine won the gold bracelet and $521,785. He had to double up his smallest stack at the table numerous times in the early going, and eventually built the largest stack at the table. Once he was king of the mountain, he didn't forget how he got there, and poured on the all-in aggression until he owned every chip on the table.
Safieddine attacked John Phan in their heads-up match, both strategically and psychologically. When he didn't have Phan cornered on a decision for all of his chips, he pressured him in regard to time by calling the clock.
"I tried to get him off his game," said Safieddine.
The final hand with Phan played out like this: Safieddine had about $4 million in chips, and Phan, $1 million. Safieddine, who made the all-in move a key part of his game, again pushed with pocket fours. Phan quickly called the rest of his chips with pocket aces. The crowd began to cheer as the board was dealt J
8
2
5
. Those cheers quickly turned into gasps of terror when the 4
was dealt on the river.
Ryan Hughes Wins Event No. 20 - $2,000 Seven-Card Stud Eight-or-Better
Perfect Timing for Quads
By Zach Bailey
Ryan Hughes had to face some giants to win his first
World Series of Poker bracelet in the $2,000 seven-card stud eight-or-better tournament.
The final-table players and chip counts were: Steve Grabowski ($373,000), Hughes ($341,000), Greg Raymer ($215,000), Doug Carli ($97,000), Min Lee ($66,000), Jim Weir ($46,000), Ron Ware ($46,000), and Adam Spiegelberg ($36,000).
The event attracted 340 entrants, which created a prize pool of more than $620,000.
After a few short stacks busted out, Raymer found himself with more than half the chips in play with four players remaining. Despite the massive chip lead that he once held, he was soon crippled after losing multiple pots in a row. He eventually was knocked out in fourth place, earning $41,460 in his second cash at this year's
World Series of Poker.
Eventually, Hughes and Lee got down to heads up, with Hughes wielding a 3-to-1 chip advantage over Lee. After only 11 hands, Lee moved all in and Hughes called. Lee showed J
8
(6
4
4
3
) 4
, but Hughes turned up J
5
(10
10
10
6
) 10
to win with quad tens. Along with the bracelet, Hughes won $176,385. Lee had to settle for the second prize of $97,461.
Don Baruch Outshoots 899 Players to Win Event No. 21 - $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em Shootout
Daniel Negreanu and Erick Lindgren Both Make Final Table
By Erik Fast
The $1,500 no-limit hold'em shootout event has a unique structure, in which players have to win three consecutive single-table sit-and-gos to capture the bracelet and the $254,107 first-place prize. David Pham won the 2006 no-limit hold'em shootout event, but didn't make it past round one this year.
With many pros winning their first table, the second-round field was tough and played well into the night. Eventually, each of the nine tables had a winner, including Erick Lindgren and Daniel Negreanu, and the final table was set.
This was Negreanu's first final table of this year's
World Series, and Lindgren has yet to win a bracelet. Right off the bat, Negreanu took control of the table, eliminating four of the first six players, and Lindgren's bracelet hopes were dashed by the two pair of Don Baruch. With more than half of the chips going into threehanded play, Negreanu was on pace for the win. But, Baruch broke his stride when he doubled up and took the chip lead shortly before the dinner break after Negreanu was crippled when his two pair lost to the straight of Baruch, and Negreanu soon went out in third place.
Heads-up play was unusually passive, until the final hand. On the button, Jared Davis raised with the A
5
. Baruch went all in with the K
Q
, and Davis called. The flop came Q
9
9
. The Q
on the turn ensured Baruch's victory, and Davis finished as the runner-up for $149,263. Baruch took home his first bracelet and $264,107 for the win.
James Mackey Wins Event No. 22 - $5,000 No-Limit Hold'em
He Faced a Killer Final Table That Lasted Only 48 Hands
By Alex Baer
According to many professional players, poker is very much a numbers game. By the numbers, 640 players put up $5,000 to enter event No. 22, the $5,000 no-limit hold'em contest. The total prize pool was $3,012,700, and the winner would receive $730,740.
The two chip leaders going to the final table were unknowns, Karga Holt and James Mackey. Among the other seven remaining players, there were two
World Poker Tour wins, two
World Series of Poker bracelet winners, and nine World Series of Poker final tables (including two main events). Mackey eventually trumped all of those previous results and became one of the youngest bracelet winners ever.
Here's the lineup he had to face at the final table: Maciek "Michael" Gracz , John "Tex" Barch, Jan Sorenson, Nick "The Takeover" Schulman, Karga Holt, William McMahon, Michael Binger, and Stuart Fox.
Fox, who made two final tables at last year's
WSOP, played only two hands of the 48 contested at the final table, and he still managed to win the second-place prize money of $448,892. The last hand of the tournament came down when he pushed all in with the K
4
and was called by Mackey, who held the 10
2
. The board ran out Q
9
7
10
10
♣.
Mackey, who is from Pottsville, Arkansas, is the third-youngest bracelet winner in history, trailing only Steve Billirakis and Jeff Madsen.
Event No. 23: Scott Clements Wins Another Bracelet, in $1,500
Pot-Limit Omaha He Won His First Bracelet Last Year
By Bob Pajich
Scott Clements came to the final table as the chip leader of the $1,500 pot-limit Omaha event, and he never gave up the lead. He steamrolled to a second
World Series of Poker bracelet, the $194,206 top prize, and a little bit of redemption.
"You win that first bracelet and they kind of say that anyone can win a bracelet," Clements said. "This year confirms that I do know what I'm doing. I know how to play more than one form of poker, and I'm not just a one-hit wonder."
Clements is not even close to being a one-hit wonder. His first bracelet came last year in the $3,000 Omaha eight-or-better event, where he won $301,175. He also holds a
World Poker Tour title and
World Series of Poker Tournament Circuit championship ring.
The final nine players, in the order they finished, were: Richard Olofsson, $7,862; K.U. Davis, $11,794; Anthony MacCanello, $16,511; Andrew Black, $22,408; Mark Davis, $29,877; Jason Newburger, $38,133; William Durkee V, $52,285; Dau Ly, $78,624; Eric Lynch, $119,508; and Clements, $194,206.
Clements himself knocked out four of the nine opponents. By the time the players were threehanded, Clements had a massive chip lead of $1.5 million to Ly's $225,000 and Lynch's $100,000. Soon, Lynch and Clements found themselves heads up after Clements turned a straight against Ly's trip queens.
The tourney ended on the first hand of heads-up play after Lynch pushed while holding the Q
7
2
2
and Clements called with the K
9
9
8
. The board finished Q
4
2
8
9
, giving Clements his second bracelet and another taste of poker glory.
Ryan Lucchesi contributed to this report.
Eli Elezra Wins Event No. 24 - $3,000 Seven-Card Stud Eight-or-Better
Captures First World Series of Poker Bracelet
By Seth Niesen
There is a laundry list of great players who have never won a
World Series of Poker bracelet, but one name has been scratched off that list. Eli Elezra outlasted a field of 236 players, who created a prize pool of $651,360, to win the seven-card stud eight-or-better championship.
Elezra bested Scotty Nguyen in a heads-up battle that lasted almost two hours. He entered the day as the chip leader with $303,000, holding a slight edge over Nguyen ($255,000). The rest of the field entered the final table as follows: George Hardie ($182,000), David Sklansky ($171,000), Dutch Boyd ($170,000), Thor Hansen ($167,000), John Harkness ($141,000), and Marshall Ragir ($28,000).
When it got down to the last two, Elezra had increased his chip lead over Nguyen to $1,099,000 to $318,000. While both players already had won a significant amount of money, they had lost one important thing - sobriety. Nguyen was double-fisting his favorite brew, and soon enough, Elezra had joined in the Dionysian revelry.
Their match looked more like a frat party than a championship tournament. It included a spectator coming down from the rail to deliver beer to the table, and Elezra receiving a round of applause after he announced to the crowd that he was drunk. When Nguyen ended up all in for his last $20,000, the last two players stood and toasted each other. On that hand, Elezra hit an ace-high straight, giving him the bracelet and the $198,984 top prize.
Event No. 25: Ben Ponzio Wins $2,000 No-Limit Hold'em Title
Last Three Players Had Nearly Same Amount of Chips
By Ryan Lucchesi
When the last three players got together to determine the $2,000 no-limit hold'em champion, it was literally anyone's game. That was because when threehanded play started, only one big blind separated the players' chips stacks.
The final three and their chip counts were: Justin Rollo, $2.125 million; Ben Ponzio, $2.19 million; and David Hewitt, $2.16 million.
The six players who were eliminated before it got to threehanded, in the order of their elimination, were: Darryl Ronconi, $34,748; Ken Einiger, $45,644; Adam Ross, $61,840; Danny Noam, $82,453; Travis Rice, $111,901; and Evan Schwartz, $164,907.
Rollo was the first to be rolled out of the Amazon room after running into Ponzio's pocket queens. Rollo pushed with the A
3
and was quickly called. This pot must have made Hewitt's skin crawl, because it gave Ponzio two-thirds of the chips in play going into heads-up action.
Ponzio had $5.3 million to the $1.2 million of Hewitt after 15 minutes of heads-up play. The blinds were kicked up to $60,000-$120,000 with a $15,000 ante. Hewitt held strong, and the heads-up match continued for more than 30 hands before it got interesting.
The last hand went like this: Ponzio raised an additional $250,000 and Hewitt moved all in. Ponzio immediately called with the K
Q
. Hewitt showed the 10
3
and the board came J
9
6
8
A
. Ponzio won the hand, the bracelet, and $599,467 in prize money. Hewitt took home $374,216.
Event No. 26: Ralph Schwartz is the $5,000 H.O.R.S.E. Champ
Phil Ivey Finishes Fourth
By Ryan Lucchesi
Ralph Schwartz overcame an excellent collection of poker talent to win the $5,000 H.O.R.S.E. event. He took home his first gold bracelet and $275,683. Schwartz emerged from a field that included all of the big names - Doyle Brunson, Daniel Negreanu, David Benyamine, Men "The Master" Nguyen, Erik Seidel, John Juanda, and many more - to make it to the final day. Lying in wait for him at that point were Phil Ivey, Bill Gazes, Alex Kravchenko, and Robert Mizrachi. Eight hours later, Schwartz emerged victorious after a short heads-up match with Gazes, and he walked away with the coveted H.O.R.S.E. title.
Here was the final table and the order of elimination: Phillip Campbell, $20,755; Thomas Schultz, $28,877; Alexander Jung, $37,901; Robert Mizrachi, $49,632; Phil Ivey, $65,424; Yeubin Guo, $99,264; Bill Gazes, $153,408; and Schwartz, $275,683.
Schwartz began heads-up play with the chip lead - $1.3 million to the $550,000 that Gazes owned. The heads-up match took only seven hands. In the last hand, which was during Omaha eight-or-better, the flop read Q
6
3
and Schwartz raised. Gazes called and checked the 4
on the turn. Schwartz bet once again, and then Gazes made the all-in call. Schwartz turned over 8-5-3-2 and Gazes flipped over K-K-7-6. The river card was the 2
, and Schwartz scooped the pot with a 6-high straight and a 6 low. Gazes had made only a pair of kings and a 7 low. Gazes was eliminated in second place and took home $153,408 in prize money.
Event No. 27: David Stucke Wins $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em Bracelet
Young Cho is the Runner-Up
By Ryan Lucchesi
With no well-known pros at the final table of the $1,500 no-limit hold'em event, the mood wasn't all that intense. The nature of the beast changes from intimidation and aggression to friendliness and a relaxed state of strategy. The big hands still take place and players clash with big cards in the hole from time to time, but, more often than not, these hands take place when players are forced to push their starved chip stacks into the middle. And this is mainly because, for too long, they have subjected themselves to rising blinds and antes. Think of it as halfway between attention and at ease. That was the state of affairs at this final table, which David Stucke eventually won.
The final 10, in order of their eliminations, were: Benjamin Kang, $28,124; Thai Ton, $36,340; Luis Sanchez, $47,400; Tom Dobrilovic, $63,200; Noam Freeman, $83,739; David Woo, $115,339; Michael Ium, $164,319; Seth Weinger, $246,478; Young Cho, $382,357; and Stucke, $603,069.
Cho became the table's aggressor, and eventually took the chip lead away from Weinger, who said throughout the threehanded match that he couldn't get any cards to play with. After Weinger hit the rail, Stucke held $5.6 million and Cho, $1.3 million.
The final hand looked like this: On the button, Cho went all in with the J
3
. Stucke quickly made the call with pocket sevens. The board was dealt Q
10
5
A
8
, and it was all over.
Bob Pajich contributed to this report.
Event No. 28: Shankar Pillai Wins $3,000 No-Limit Hold'em Title
Beth Shak Finishes Second
By Erik Fast
Final tables are always full of people on a mission, but the $3,000 no-limit hold'em final table played host to two special quests for glory. Only a week after winning bracelet No. 11, Phil Hellmuth was at another final table, going for No. 12. Beth Shak was also in the running for some glory; with Katja Thater winning the razz event earlier in the day, Shak had a shot at another historic honor: If she won, it would be the first time that two women captured a bracelet on the same day.
Neither Hellmuth nor Shak had it easy, with a tough table that included Perry Friedman, Brett Richey, and each other to get through. Hellmuth put on quite a show along the way. On a few of his hands, he bought insurance from Phil Ivey, which earned Ivey more than $100,000 on the night. Eventually, Hellmuth was eliminated in sixth place, and although he didn't capture the bracelet, he did tie T.J. Cloutier for most final tables made.
Shak got closer to her goal when she got heads up with Shankar Pillai. On the eighth hand, Pillai raised to $180,000 and Shak reraised $550,000 more. Pillai called and the flop came 10
8
3
. Shak pushed and Pillai eventually called with the A
8
, which had Shak's K
8
outkicked. After the turn and river brought blanks, Pillai was awarded the bracelet and $527,829. Though she barely missed the historic achievement, Shak still outlasted 825 players to finish second and earn $328,683.
Katja Thater Wins $1,500 Razz Championship - Event No. 29
First Woman to Win an Open-Field Event Since Annie Duke
By Julio Rodriguez
Just because of the ladies event alone, a woman is guaranteed to win a bracelet every year. But not since Annie Duke's win in the 2004 $2,000 Omaha eight-or-better event has a woman won an open-field
World Series of Poker tournament. Now, Katja Thater can add her name to a very short list of women.
Thater took out Larry St. Jean to win event No. 29, $1,500 razz. On the final hand, Thater's hand read (8
2
) 9
3
5
3
(4
), and St. Jean's, (5
2
) 10
5
7
8
(4
). Thater's 8-5-4-3-2 low beat St. Jean's 8-7-5-4-2 for the bracelet.
This was Thater's second final table of the
Series. She finished fifth in the ladies championship event.
Players were up until 4 a.m. on day one and 3 a.m. on day two, in one of the longest tournaments of the
Series. The final eight players voted to come back on day three to finish the tournament, which originally was scheduled as only a two-day event.
The final-table results were as follows: Katja Thater, $132,653; Larry St. Jean, $73,311; O'Neil Longson, $46,547; Paul "Eskimo" Clark, $31,186; Denny Axel, $24,204; Mark Vos, $18,386; Men "The Master" Nguyen, $14,197; and Thomas Daubert, $10,473.
Event No. 30: Hoyt Corkins Wins $2,500 Sixhanded No-Limit Hold'em Bracelet
It's His Second World Series of Poker Bracelet
By Seth Niesen
If you could bring only one person to sweat you at a
World Series of Poker final table, who would it be? If you were Hoyt Corkins, it would be Doyle Brunson.
Brunson was on hand to watch as Alabama native and professional poker player Corkins won gold in the $2,500 sixhanded no-limit hold'em event. Corkins outlasted 847 players, who created a $1,270,500 prize pool, to take home the first-place prize of $515,065. Corkins came to the final table as the chip leader with $1,371,000, and the rest of the field stacked up as follows: Alan Sass ($1,217,000), William Pao-Wei Lin ($726,000), Terrence Chan ($502,000), Kelly Vande-Mheen ($307,000), and James Pittman ($127,000). Corkins built a dominating chip stack and used it to cut through the field.
He eventually got down to heads up with Chan, and he won his second bracelet on their 80th hand of play. Chan raised with the A
4
from the button, and Corkins shoved over the top. Chan thought for a few minutes, in a process that mirrored physical pain on several occasions, before making the call. His pain suddenly subsided when he realized he was a favorite over Corkins' K
10
. But the match ended when the board came 9
8
8
K
6
. Corkins won the pot and the tournament, relegating Chan to second-place money of $287,345.
Corkins is an accomplished pro who won his first
WSOP bracelet in 1992. He also won a
World Poker Tour title at Foxwoods in 2003, and finished second in the 2005
WSOP Tournament of Champions.
Event No. 31: Daniel Schreiber Wins $5,000 Heads-Up No-Limit Hold'em Bracelet
More Than 390 Players Competed
By Seth Niesen
The heads-up no-limit hold'em event is a completely different animal compared to any other tournament at the
World Series of Poker. It is the ultimate battle of wits between players, a one-on-one showdown in which players have no one else to blame but themselves if they fail. In the end, only one player survived nine grueling rounds of play to claim the top prize of $425,594 from the $1,842,400 prize pool and a gold
WSOP bracelet. Daniel Schreiber beat out 391 other players to take down the tournament, defeating his final challenger Mark Muchnik.
Schreiber's road to the final match took him through fourth-place finisher Vanessa Selbst, who arguably had one of the toughest paths to the final four. In the four matches prior to her run-in with Schreiber, she beat Layne Flack, Paul Wasicka, Peter Jetten, and Shannon Shorr.
The heads-up championship match between Muchnik and Schreiber was a best-of-three contest that saw Muchnik get shut out. The first game of the match saw Schreiber take a huge chip lead early after he turned a straight with the A
Q
and got Muchnik to call a $750,000 raise on the end.
In the second game, Muchnik put Schreiber on notice that he wasn't going to play a weak-tight game anymore. He fired hard and often, but the cards weren't with him, and he ended up taking second place and the $230,300 prize. This was Schreiber's first
WSOP bracelet and major cash.
Event No. 32: Jeffrey Lisandro Captures $2,000 Stud Title
It's His First World Series of Poker Bracelet
By Ryan Lucchesi
Many elite players have come close to
World Series of Poker gold, and yet, it has eluded them. Some of these names may surprise you. Erick Lindgren, Gus Hansen, J.C. Tran, Gavin Smith, Phil Gordon, David Benyamine, John Phan, Michael Mizrachi, and Marcel Luske are among those who don't own a bracelet. Smith and Phan both came close this year, but each finished as the runner-up.
Another player who had finished second in his quest to win a first bracelet at this
WSOP was Jeffrey Lisandro. He lost a superb heads-up battle to Allen Cunningham in event No. 13. He came to the final table of event No. 32 as the chip leader, received a large blow early, and then fought back to claim the golden prize.
Lisandro defeated Nick Frangos in their heads-up confrontation to win $118,426 and the $2,000 seven-card stud title. More importantly, he claimed his first gold bracelet and further solidified his place among poker's elite. Lisandro followed in the footsteps of Eli Elezra a few days before him to join the timeless fraternity of bracelet winners.
The final eight players in the order of their eliminations were: Farshad Cohen, $8,916; David Brody, $12,405; Gregory Pappas. $16,282; Daniel Negreanu, $21,321; Severin Walser, $28,105; Nesbitt Coburn, $42,643; Nick Frangos, $65,902; and Lisandro, $118,426.
Lisandro is a fantastic tournament player, with tournament winnings of more than $2.5 million. His first
WSOP cash took place in 1997, and he's cashed a total of 18 times.
Event No. 33: Alan Smurfit Wins $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha (With Rebuys) Title
The Marathon Man
By Zach Bailey
Alan Smurfit came out on top of a heads-up battle that lasted more than 160 hands in the
World Series of Poker $1,500 pot-limit Omaha (with rebuys) event. He beat out 293 players and took home $464,867 of the nearly $1.7 million prize pool. His opponent, Qushqar Morad, endured the same five-hour battle only to finish in second place. He took home $279,595.
The end of this epic battle came when the blinds had escalated to an astronomical $80,000-$160,000. Smurfit limped in from the button and Morad checked. Morad moved all in on a flop of J
8
6
and was called by Smurfit. Smurfit showed the Q
J
8
2
and was ahead of Morad, who flipped up the 10
9
9
6
. The turn was the 6
and the river the 8
, which gave Smurfit the win, the money, and the gold bracelet.
Before the marathon match, the players had to get through a final table that started with Morad ($995,000), Chris Bjorin ($605,000), Brandon Adams ($500,000), Chau Giang ($360,000), Hilbert Shirey ($335,000), Van Marcus ($220,000), Robert Fellner ($210,000), Sunny Nijran ($195,000), and Smurfit ($90,000). Smurfit started the final table the lowest in chips, making his win that much more impressive.
U.S. Facing Heat From World Trade Organization Members for Gambling Stance
Antigua and Barbuda Wants $3.4 Billion in Sanctions
By Bob Pajich
The United States potentially faces trade sanctions in the billions of dollars from one member, and maybe two, of the World Trade Organization because of its stance on online gambling.
The Caribbean nation of Antigua and Barbuda will seek trade concessions from the U.S. because of U.S. actions in its attempts to stop Americans from gambling online, and the European Union is looking to do the same.
Antigua and Barbuda will seek more than $3.4 billion in annual concessions, primarily through suspension of Antigua's obligations in regard to copyrights, trademarks, and industrial designs and patents under the WTO's intellectual property rights agreement. Antigua already has filed paperwork with the WTO, and the E.U.'s top financial advisor, Charlie McCreevy, last month told the European Parliament that the E.U. is considering doing the same.
The case between the U.S. and Antigua and Barbuda has been going on since 2003. WTO panels have repeatedly told the U.S. that it's violating WTO agreements by working to prevent its residents from using online sites located in Antigua and Barbuda. Even after the final appeal failed earlier this year, U.S. officials told the WTO that it doesn't believe it's violating any trade agreements, because when officials signed paperwork in 1994, they didn't realize that online gambling fell under rules that cover recreational activities.
Instead of complying with WTO rulings, the U.S. responded by stating that it will modify the agreement to reflect its current stance. U.S. officials believe that by doing this, the U.S. is now complying with WTO rules.
WTO rules state that when a nation moves to revise agreements that already have been signed, member nations may seek compensation if the revision directly affects companies located within their borders.
Antigua and Barbuda's complaints were made before the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act was signed into law by President George W. Bush in October.
The E.U., which goes under the WTO member name European Communities, has consistently pressured its member nations to allow its residents to access online gambling sites that are located within the E.U. Like the WTO, the E.U. considers online gambling a product that should not be restricted in countries that allow gambling.
This is the main reason that the WTO ruled in favor of Antigua and Barbuda in this case. If the U.S. had banned all forms of online gambling - particularly interstate horse betting - the WTO most likely would have ruled against the island nations.
ESPN Offering Live Final-Table Coverage of World Series of Poker Main Event
Pay-Per-View Package Costs $19.95
By Bob Pajich
Poker fans who can't make it to Las Vegas on July 17, which is the final-table day of this year's
World Series of Poker, don't panic.
ESPN is again offering coverage of the main-event final table through a pay-per-view package. The final table begins at 6 p.m. PT.
The package, called
World Series of Poker Final Table Live!, costs $19.95, and can be obtained through local cable service or the Internet.
Ali Nejad will provide play-by-play commentary and poker analysis will be provided by Phil Gordon.
ESPN added a few new features to its live broadcast this year. Fans will be able to send in questions via e-mail, and select questions will be answered live during the event.
ESPN also will ask fans to text message their predictions about who will be eliminated next, and the poll results will be displayed during the broadcast.
ESPN also will interview many of the 2007
WSOP bracelet winners and past main-event champions throughout the broadcast.
People who are interested in ordering the pay-per-view package should visit espn.com and type "poker" into the search box.
Venetian Deep Stack Extravaganza II Booming
More Than $4 Million Awarded So Far
By Bob Pajich
During the month of June, at the property made to look like an ancient Italian city, hundreds of poker players a day took their shot in a tournament series that generated millions of dollars in prize money and plenty of buzz during this summer of poker in Las Vegas.
Through 21 events, The Venetian
Deep Stack Extravaganza II (
DSE II) generated prize pools totaling $4.4 million. The series ended a week after this issue's editorial deadline. The buy-ins of all of the events were $330, $540, and $1,060. To help pack the tournaments with players, The Venetian ran single-table satellites that started at $80. And, it worked.
"We find that players like our events so much that they are now substituting Deeps Stack events for other tournaments in town," said Kathy Raymond, The Venetian's poker room manager. "Players have responded extremely positively to our structure, our staff, and our room, and it's been a tremendous success."
With nine events left, more than 9,300 players have participated. The satellites awarded two players lammers that could be used to enter any tournament or satellite held at The Venetian.
The Venetian
DSE II was one of four tournaments that took place in Vegas last month: Others were the
World Series of Poker, the
World Poker Tour Bellagio Cup III, and
Binion's Poker Classic.
The
WSOP, of course, is the sun that the other tournaments rotated around this summer. Thousands and thousands of players and poker fans scheduled trips to Vegas around the
WSOP. Knowing this, The Venetian decided to give players something that wasn't offered anywhere else.
"We never really went into this looking at it to be direct competition with the
WSOP. We always positioned ourselves as a complement," Raymond said.
Only Binion's compared to the
DSE II in terms of the cost of buy-ins (it actually had only one tournament scheduled with a buy-in of more than $200), and it too consistently attracted 300 or more players, at least in its no-limit hold'em events. But Binion's schedule was full of non-hold'em events. Those tournaments attracted almost 200 players each, but the prize pools generated at The Venetian dominated.
Just check these stats out: The $540 event that took place on June 16 had 505 players, and the winner, Dale Richards, won $75,536; the $330 event on June 20 had 589 entrants, and the winner, Stuart Taylor, won $52,860; the $540 event that took place on June 7 had 562 entrants, and the winner, Stan Zielinski, won $84,061. The $1,060 event that took place a day later attracted 372 entrants, and the winner, Brent Roberts, won $111,282.
Raymond was thrilled at the turnout, and laid the success of the tournament directly at the feet of her staff. She knows that in the competitive Las Vegas poker landscape, her room needs to stand out to potential customers. Food and drink service, a special parking pass that's available to regulars, general staff friendliness, and poker room rates are just a few of the reasons for players to return.
For Raymond, the
DSE II was a great opportunity to show the poker public just how good The Venetian's poker room is.
"We're not looking at this as a stand-alone event. We're looking at it as a player's introduction to The Venetian poker room," Raymond concluded.
The Dragon is Burning Down the House
David "The Dragon" Pham has gone on serious heaters before. His results page on CardPlayer.com goes 17 deep, and this year alone, he has cashed a dozen times for $669,345 and has 3,570 points in the
Card Player Player of the Year (POY) race. He's only 799 points away from taking the lead from J.C. Tran.
If Pham happens to win the 2007 POY title, it will be the second time. He won it in 2000, and would join Men "The Master" Nguyen and T.J. Cloutier as a repeat winner.
Pham owns two
World Series of Poker bracelets (2001 $2,000 S.H.O.E. event and 2006 $2,000 no-limit hold'em shootout event), and has cashed three times this year, including one final table in the $3,000 limit hold'em event, in which he finished fourth. He has won three tournaments so far this year, including two within three days at the
Winnin' o' the Green at The Bicycle Casino in Bell Gardens, California.
He also won the
Mirage Poker Showdown $5,000 heads-up championship in May, which was good for $155,200. Days later, he nearly made the final table of the
Mirage Poker Showdown championship event, but finished 11th ($34,582).
Pham plays a ton of events, and players shouldn't be surprised to see him take a seat in tournaments that many pros wouldn't touch. The
Winnin' o' the Green events, for example, cost $500 and $1,000. Even though, combined, these victories were worth only 402 POY points, they could be important in a race that is proving to be a tight one. If Pham continues his winning ways, he could chalk up another POY title.
Look Out!
Scott Clements is now officially in the Player of the Year race. With his win in the $1,500 pot-limit Omaha event at this year's
WSOP - his second bracelet in less than a year - Clements has cemented himself as an elite player who could win any event at any time. His first bracelet came last July in the $3,000 Omaha eight-or-better event.
He's had a great year so far. Since finishing eighth in the
PokerStars.com Caribbean Adventure in January, Clements has cashed six more times for a total of $637,438. That includes three cashes at this year's
WSOP, including his bracelet win.
After his
WSOP win this year, Clements said that he wanted to prove that he wasn't some sort of one-hit wonder by winning another event. He has nothing to worry about. Take one look at his tournament-results page at CardPlayer.com and you'll be able to tell that he's someone who needs to be accounted for at every table he plays.
Upcoming
With the
World Series of Poker nearly in the rearview mirror, it's time to look ahead at where the tournament trail is about to take players. With no
WSOP Tournament Circuit events planned, the schedule's not as jampacked as in past years. First, players will return to
World Poker Tour action with the
Legends of Poker championship at The Bicycle Casino (starting Aug. 25). They'll then head to the
Gulf Coast Poker Championship at the Beau Rivage Hotel and Casino in Biloxi, Mississippi (starting Sept. 6). After that, the schedule picks up again.
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